I did not dream of having kids. It was never part of the plan.
I wanted to write and live in different places, experience this diverse, expansive earth everyone keeps talking about.
At some point, I even wanted to go to outer space, discover aliens, leave footprints on the moon, trek Mars, name stars.
But you see, life has a sick sense of humor and who would have imagined I’d end up birthing 3 boys instead.
The irony.
I wasn’t ready.
Stuck in the mundane.
I think I’ll never be ready.
Fine, joke’s on me.
But I kept on, even when my mind was in total chaos. I still keep on.
I had the choice to get away, to run away as I always do, but I stayed.
And trying to be a mother, keeping up a facade of this supposedly strong person and parenting alone while my heart shattered into infinite pieces, was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to endure.
But oh, the laughter of children, the sweetest songs, such beautiful music to my ears, I could listen to for a lifetime.
The course of our lives sometimes do not play out like how we pictured it in our heads but somehow, we always end up where we should be.
There’s so much to see in our province honestly. Day trip bonding sesh with my cousins the few days they were home.
Photo set | Murcia & DSB
Lunched at Mambukal Resort, one of the popular mountain resorts in Negros Occidental located in Murcia and rests at 1,200 meters above sea level. It’s been the go to if you want a feel of the mountains since I was a kid. Can go hiking up to the seventh falls, kayaking in the lagoon, camping, watch the gigantic fruit bats or go dipping in the sulfur pool.
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Passed by the viewing deck going to DSB overlooking a wide stretch of terrains and plantation.
Coffee at La Guada cafe. It’s a cafe resto with a marvelous view and guests can also stay overnight. They have a variety of rooms that could accommodate just you, a couple or family or you can opt to bring a tent, set up camp, make a bonfire and grill some barbecue. Can also go river trekking with their local guides.
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Capped off our day at this pine tree haven in DSB.
Long overdue bonding sesh with my cousins, finally got the chance to do an out of town trip after 3 years!
Photo set | Bohol
Left Bacolod for Dumaguete at 3:00am to catch the 9:50am trip for Tagbilaran.
If you bring a car, travel time from Bacolod to Dumaguete is 4 hours (with coffee in between). We took the fast craft to Tagbilaran ~ Oceanjet takes almost 2 hours from Dumaguete and fees are P700 for tourist class and P1,020 for business class. Trips are 9:50am and 2:30pm daily.
Day 1
Arrived Bohol just in time for lunch. Soooo hungry.
Since we still had half of the day to kill, we went to a couple of tourist spots in Panglao before heading back to my aunt’s place in Maribojoc.
Passed by this old church (forgot the name) that has a well inside, Mama Mary’s well they call it, where they get holy water. I think this was built in the 1920s, I’d have to verify with my cousin since she was the one who got a brochure of the place lol. Very pretty interior AND the ceiling was hand painted by someone.
Bee Farm
Just ate ice cream here actually. They moved their colonies to a different place since they opened up accommodations and kept one for demo purposes. Bought honey to bring home.
Hinagdanan Cave
Amazing how this is so well maintained! And the water is so so so clear.
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Day 2
Loboc River
Tried the Loboc river cruise, early lunch for us so to avoid the crowds. We had a good boat, it had a deck and was sat with a good view, great for taking photos haha.
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Wildlife and Nature Park
This opened 5 months ago, fairly new, just a few meters away from the tarsier conservation and they house around 25 exotic animals. Will definitely be back with the kids next time.
The famous tarsier Bohol is so known for, these were wild and we found two in the area
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Chocolate Hills
Another must see when in Bohol, was once declared as one of the seven wonders of the world. More than 1,268 cone-shaped hills spread over an area of 50 square kilometers or more and vary in size from 30 meters to 120 meters in height.
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After going around these “mandatory” spots, we headed to Henann Resort to check-in and just in time for sunset and happy hour.
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Happy hour by the beach, unlimited steak buffet at Amorita Resort and night swimming at the hotel.
Dinner buffet at Amorita Resort is P1,100 net, inclusive of taxes.
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Day 3
Woke up to breakfast and ate until the buffet closed haha.
Was supposed to go dolphin watching and island hopping this day but we decided to just savor the hotel amenities and laze by the beach.
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Already planning to go back in December with the kids. We fell in love with the place for sure.
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We left late afternoon to go back to my aunt’s place and to this feast! Everything was soooo fresh and soooo yummy, I couldn’t stop eating!
Day 4 | Homebound
Took the 7:30am trip from Tagbilaran to Dumaguete, bought silvanas to bring home and lunched at Royal Suites for some bulalo steak.
Same rates apply to Oceanjet trips from Tagbilaran to Dumaguete. Schedule is 7:30am and 12:30pm daily.
So good to have spent the weekend with family, major sepanx already.
Was supposed to be a week-long vacay in Sydney but this momma had well, responsibilities so I caught a later flight in the week and actually just stayed for 4 days. Too short!
And the hell I had to go through before getting on that SYD flight. It was the same day that typhoon Ompong made it’s landfall in the PI. First time I had really bad anxiety. My 2pm flight to Manila got cancelled and they moved me to a 7pm flight. And to make matters worse, my Syd flight was at 11pm. I felt like throwing up.
Fortunately, I got on the 6pm flight and there was no delay. I was praying nonstop for good weather and the heavens heard me. The rain stopped and the skies cleared. This is it!
Arrived Manila early, paid my travel tax and lined up for bag drop.
Yep, I had to endure this line just to drop my luggage. I already checked in online. Perks of flying budget airlines.
Good thing immigration was not packed and arrived at the boarding gate just in time.
Wait for meeeee!!!
It was an 8-hour long flight but I had a good seat and slept the entire time.
Arrived Sydney for Maryrose’s birthday!! Took the airport link to Merrylands to meet the rest of us for her lunch celeb. Got a train map, bought my Opal card and prayed that I don’t get lost (since I did not have wifi and travelling alone).
Caught up with some high-school friends in Mascot for dinner afterwards.
Where we went:
Apart from Kmart, Woolworths, Westfield, Target, Costco and Metro (which we just coincidentally end our everyday with lol), we actually went to a couple of places around Sydney.😂😂
Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge
Mandatory. Strolled along the harbour so to get that Sydney feel. Another case of expectation vs. reality. It was packed, maybe because it was Sunday and maybe because it was the same day of the Sydney Marathon.
Blue Mountains
Three sisters turned to stone.
Wild Life Sydney Zoo
I realized I don’t like Koalas and Tasmanian Devils are so cuuuuute!
Sea Life Sydney Aquarium
Penguin ride!
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Darling Harbour
Coffee break and this view!
Town Hall and Queen Victoria Building
Felt like I was warped into a different place, something like out of the books I read. Totally mesmerized by the architecture of these more than a century-old buildings.
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Bondi Beach
Came a little too overdressed for the beach. It was cold out when we left Guildford.
Time moved too fast for me and suddenly, it was time to go home. Will definitely be back. The always running after the bus and missing the train paid off, will know our way around the next time. 😂
No dull moments here. Hopefully next time we’d be complete.
Almost 1 hour plane ride from Cebu to Sayak Airport and we went straight to our first stop for the trip (which is just like 5 minutes away). We booked all our tours with Galatea.
Kawhagan Island
Pit stop for lunch since eating/cooking and drinking is no longer allowed at the Sugba Lagoon.
Sugba Lagoon
Very picturesque turquoise waters. Definitely a must see. Nice that when we went, it was not that crowded.
We left around 4pm to go to General Luna which is like 45 minutes away from the airport and checked in at the Bravo Hotel.
We had dinner at Harana and at 9PM they cleared the dance floor. Apparently, every night there is a different party at a particular venue. Saturdays are for Harana.
Day 3 | Siargao
Woke up around lunch time and headed off to Kermit. Food is really good, did not disappoint.
And we started our salubong sesh by the beach. Sundays are for Bravo. Super fun night, thank you friends!
Day 4 | Siargao
Party boat by Galatea. Happy birthday to me!
Daku Island
Clear blue waters, fine white sand, beer in hand, soaked up the sun. Lovely.
Birthday lunch 😋
Corregidor Island
Island is not as crowded compared to the others. You could snorkel and hike here too.
Naked Island
Toilet break.
Cloud 9
Regularly rated as one of the top 10 surf sites in the world. Bonus for beautiful sunsets.
WILD. But we’ll keep that to ourselves.
Thank you universe for yet another year of awesome.
Life is full of sporadic facades and intermittent moments, bits and pieces tattered with every flip of a page. And sometimes the struggles forge you into this impetuous cynic, averted by the water that you keep to hydrate. They leave you shriveled, bare and almost dying. Almost.
–
I cannot even begin to describe the pain that burn from the weight that you suffer, from the little left sanity strapped hanging on your skin. But you see, everything is pulled to inspire your spirit, to overwhelm your soul, to post a some sort of peace that allows a moment of quiet in this otherwise indulged and over stimulated space.
On our way to Hinoba-an, we passed by Campomanes bay at the Amity training camp. Thinking of letting our kids join the second batch some time in May, training on basic survival skills.
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Juancho also got to take a picture with his favorite fire truck and ambulance!
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Included with the camp is this view.
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Arrived at Nabulao Beach and Dive Resort just in time for lunch. We booked the Master Suite, very roomy with 2 queen beds, a sofa bed, clean bathroom and a terrace with a view. I could just live here lol. Rate is P5,000 per night (peak season), room could accommodate 6 people.
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Time for a swim!
The resort has 2 swimming pools, one where they have their diving lessons and one where kids could swim. They also have a mini bar by the pool, billiards and foosball. Other activities include water sports such as jet skis, banana boat, paraw sailing and island hopping.
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Lazed by the shore to wait for the sunset.
Kids writing names on the sand, playing volleyball and building sand castles.
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It was a Good Friday indeed.
Day 2 | Black Saturday
Went Island hopping and the kids enjoyed! You could rent boats from the resort — big boat that could accommodate 25 people is P3,500 for 2 hours and small boat that could accommodate 10 people is P1,500 for 2 hours.
The little kids were not scared, I swear (hahaha!).
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First stop was Obong caves.
There are many entrances to the Obong caves, 2 of which are dry entrances, the caves where we took the kids to and one that is only accessible by boat or by swimming as the entrance is from the sea. That cave we did not get to see because it was crowded.
Arrived to people cooking lunch by the shore (lol). Sad that the cave walls are full of vandals and some leave their trash behind.
Went inside the caves with the use of our cellphone flashlights and was greeted with stalagmite formations.
The caves played a role during World War II, when the Philippines was occupied by the Japanese. The American Forces landed near Hinoba-an and used the town as their island headquarters. So glad to have the kids explore a little bit of Negrense history.
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So there was a little bit of confusion with our boat booking that we ended up joining our friends on the big boat. All good.
Next stop was to a friend’s private beach where we were able to just relax and sip on some fresh buko. The place was awesome child friendly as the beach has shallow and very clear water.
Kids were paddle boarding, riding jet skis and building sand castles while we adults were all talking about random stuff like young living oils and gallstones (hahaha).
Went back to the resort to have late lunch, napped for a bit and waited for sunset but it started to rain really hard. View was still beautiful.
Can’t diet in this place. Food is really good and sold at a very reasonable price. Overall experience at Nabulao is great! Very courteous and accommodating staff, very clean rooms and facilities, good value for money.
Day 3 | Easter Sunday
Beautiful sunrise to cap the holy week.
To old ends and new beginnings.
Grateful to have spent the long weekend with the most important people in my life.
Almost 30 minutes from Bacolod City, Duyan Cafe is located in Sitio Lantawan, Brgy. Guimbalaon, Silay City. Approximately 21 kilometers from the Silay Airport, route is well paved and cafe is visibly on the side of the road, you can’t miss it!
Unwind and chill.
They serve sandwiches, coffee, tea and astonishing views. No entrance fee! The perfect weekend getaway. Even the kids love it!
Duyan Cafe is open Wednesdays – Sundays from 7:00 am to 6:30 pm.
Our annual Vday getaway was cut one day short because of typhoon Basyang but we managed lol.
Day 1 | Valentine’s Day
Stayed in Negros Occidental (for a change).
Brought my date with me to eat tooooo much seafood and watch the sunsetSunset at Melkens Seafood Restaurant, Brgy. Balaring, Silay City
Haven’t gone to the beach yet but I look so dark already (I’m blaming it on work and softball lol). Valentine’s day spent with best friends and family.
Japanese Vday dinner with the fambam ❤️
Day 2 | Dumaguete
Road trip!
Well because my friends love to eat we had breakfast first at McDonald’s (haha) then lunch at Kalan-an sa Dalan in Hinigaran.
Kalan-an sa Dalan, Hinigaran – good place to stop over when driving south
Arrived Dumaguete just in time for sunset. Normally it takes about 5 hours or less when driving from Bacolod City but well, we had so many side (food) trips.
First stop, Rizal Boulevard. Because we wanted to blend in with the tourists (haha).
You have the option to take the RORO or the fast craft when going to Siquijor Island from Dumsville. We took the RORO, takes about an hour — Montenegro Lines cost P145.00/person (P130 regular fare and P15 terminal fee).
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Siquijor is known as the Mystic Island because of its mystic traditions such as black magic and sorcery. But in all honesty, those are like — ancient. Mystic Island because the place is truly magical in all its sense.
From the pristine waters of the port to the emerald green shades of the waterfalls to the beaches with powdery white sand.
Not only that, the people are generally very friendly and accommodating.
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We rented a multi-cab to take us to places for the day. Rate was P1,800 and our driver was a former councilor of one of the towns, I forgot which one. Very simple people.
Went around the markets to look for sea urchins but to no avail, all SOLD OUT! 😦
We only went to 2 of the popular spots on the island because we didn’t really have much time (and we all woke up late haha), we were only there for the day. Going to Cambugahay falls, you actually pass by the Fish Spa, it’s under a 400-year-old Balete tree somewhere in Lazi but we skipped this one as it was really crowded.
135 steps down.
Normally, the water is the shade of emerald green but since it had been storming the whole week, water was kind of murky.
It was really crowded that day and waiting time for lunch is one hour, perfect excuse to swim in the sea and laze on the shore. Amazing that despite being a public beach, it is very well maintained! Water is crystal clear, shore is clean. Food is so so but we were so hungry we devoured everything.
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Took us 45 minutes from the beach to the port and the scenery was so picturesque, staying on the island for one day is not enough.
Boarded the 6pm RORO back to Dumaguete. Forgot the shipping line but regular fare was P100. We were pooped.
Napped at the hotel when we arrived and went to Sans Rival (again) for dinner.
We stayed at Sierra Hotel in Dumaguete City. It’s very conveniently located near major commercial hubs and tourist destinations, and is only minutes away from the airport and seaport. It’s fairly new having opened 5 floors in 2016 and the 6th floor in January of this year. Rooms are spacious, comfy and clean. We stayed in a deluxe twin room for P2,900/night.
Took us 4 hours to arrive in Bacolod City and we went straight to Silay City for friends to catch their 9pm flight back to Manila. But first! Capped off our trip with inasal pandesyosa, isaw and pork barbecue at Golden Food Park.
Always a riot with my forever dates. My whole face hurts from all the nonstop laughter. Thanks loves!
You need not go far, this farm is actually just located within the city proper.
Since me and my sister are looking into maximizing what little farm space we have left (and sadly sugar is not doing so well right now), we were really interested with the agripreneurship trainings Peñalosa Farms offers, so hoping we could learn a thing or two, we drove to Victorias City to inquire and see the place itself. And yes it was truly heaven. No wasted space here, the whole place was full of herbs and ornamental plants and farm animals.
We were welcomed with this tea made of 5 herbs (Ashitaba, Taheebo, Gotukola, Peppermint and Calamansi) sweetened with honey and I’d say it was really good considering I’m not really a tea person.
I especially loved this space, a garden made with recycled materials.
All around the farm, you get to see so much recycled stuff utilized as planters and even furniture. From used PET bottles and containers to used tires to used PVC pipes. Anything you could recycle, they use. Very ingenious.
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The farm features aquaponics, they grow a large variety of mushrooms, organic vegetables, herbs, ornamental plants and probiotic livestock. I was amazed to see the hogs were so huge even when they do not use commercialized feeds, they formulate their own.
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As how the owner advocates that no Filipino should go hungry in his own native land, he offers transformational agripreneurship seminars to help farmers or would-be farmers start up an organic based business.
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Imagine what you could do with just a small piece of land. There is no unproductive soil so to speak. Excited to get my hands dirty.
